Joe Kline / The BulletinAudience members fill the Bend High auditorium for the Author! Author! event with Cheryl Strayed on Sunday evening.

Cheryl Strayed’s memory of her time hiking the Pacific Crest Trail was shaped into the best-selling memoir “Wild.” On Sunday in Bend, the author recounted why it was important to turn that time from her 20s into a story she could share.

Strayed spoke before an audience of 1,400 packed into the Bend High auditorium as part of the Deschutes Public Library Foundation’s “Author! Author!” series. In addition to her memoir, Strayed has published a novel and collection of advice columns, but her talk focused on the 1,100-mile trip that became “Wild” and the process of publishing her recollections of that time. The memoir, which was released about two years ago, captures the story of how Strayed came to live with the trauma of unexpectedly losing her mother.

“While walking and carrying that heavy pack, I realized exactly what I needed,” Strayed said. “I learned how to keep putting one foot in front of the other, even though it really, really hurt. And when I wrote it, I wanted to write a true story about what a transformation looks like, because it’s not as explicit as Hollywood makes it seem. I didn’t go from Charles Manson to Buddha and I didn’t become a better person, but I became more in touch with my strong parts.”

Strayed added she didn’t write to give a report of her trip, but rather to “find out what it all meant.”

“What I realized years later was that I went on that hike to become what my mom had raised me to be,” she said. “It’s the woman she wanted me to be, and so I did it to honor her.”

Though she never made it to Bend during her trip in the ’90s that became “Wild,” she did note that the people from Bend she met on the Pacific Crest Trail were always less impressed by her long journey than other hikers.

“I guess you guys do that long of a hike all the time here,” Strayed said as the audience cheered.

Strayed also took time to talk about the yet-to-be-released movie adaptation of her memoir, which stars Reese Witherspoon as Strayed. Parts of the film were shot in Central Oregon, though Strayed made a point of apologizing for one glaring error.

“The first picture from the film is out, and behind Reese is Smith Rock,” Strayed said. “Everyone in Bend emailed me, and I know, to us this is an iconic place in Oregon that is definitely not on the PCT. But be gentle, to the film crew this was just some pretty rocks. It will be our little secret.”

Jordan Marks, 21, who made the trip from Eugene to see Strayed, admitted she was “terrified” to meet the author.

“She represents the ability in everyone to be comfortable with yourself and to be strong, especially for women,” Marks said.

Christie Gestvang, 59, said Strayed’s personality was exactly what she had expected after reading “Wild.”

“The sense of humor and everything else was there,” she said. “She’s one of those people who takes risks and is very honest, even about those less-than-glamorous moments of life.”

— Reporter: 541-633-2160, tleeds@bendbulletin.com